Sophie is a white female with brown curly hair which is tied up. She wears her favourite off-white loose dance trousers and a white top. She is in the middle of a dance move, shot from above with natural lighting in a dance studio.

Sophie Halstead

A Bit Of A Roundup:

Artist Diary #3

I believe that the performance of Sorry? for A Bit Of A Do was a success! I had friends watching which offered a big support. Some of the feedback of people who know my work was that they thought that the piece allowed me to establish my choreographic style. I agree with this and felt the freedom and agency to create a piece that was what I wanted to do. Some feedback was also that it was ‘beautiful’, which is something I wasn’t expecting! I hope to think that this is because of the honesty from which the piece was created.  

In black and white. A white woman in a black vest and shiny, black, ruffled material around her arms and legs, with slits down each side. Her hands are crossing in front of her face. Audience members are in the foreground, watching.

It was exciting to share the work at Stanley Arts. The main hall where it was performed is ornate and I was able to utilise the cabaret set up as well as the raised stage area. I would like to play with moving between the audience in future performances of the work.

A white woman stands on stage in silver, sparkly underwear. She is lit by fairy lights which are wound around her torso. She is looking down at her body and smiling, with her arms extended diagonally downwards.

On the performance day tech time was limited  therefore the lighting states needed to remain simple. The stage lighting added a another layer to the composition of the piece and this is something that I would like to explore further. I am interested in playing with creative lighting which could be more complex and integrated into the choreography to compliment the lights with the costume.

I plan to continue to develop the piece, and I believe that the performance at A Bit Of A Do was almost a first draft. I would like to experiment more with costume design and music accompaniment, with a goal to work more collaboratively with other artists.

I would also like to develop the accessibility of the piece. I purposefully made the piece focused on visuals to include the D/deaf community, but I believe that there is more to be explored with how the sound can also be translated. I would also like to learn how the piece translates to people who are partially sighted or blind and what can be put in place to develop the accessibility.  

A long exposure shot where all the movement is blurred. A white woman dressed in black is against a dark background. Lights shine out from her palms and she looks upwards and to the left.

I am hoping to find venues which it can be performed at to experiment with different spaces.

A mirror selfie of Sophie, a white female with brown hair tied up into a bun and she is making an exaggerated pout expression. She is wearing a blue top and black shorts and is wrapped in fairy lights.

A Bit Of An Update:

Artist Diary #2

I suddenly have a piece! My focus has shifted onto creative integration of costume and experimental lighting in order to consider the piece as a whole experience not just dancing. This was supported by my mentor Lea Anderson who reinforced the focus on dance as a visual art which is inclusive of elements beyond just movement. Lea’s work often uses design to create context to the dancers’ movement. I believe this approach makes dance more inclusive to audiences from different backgrounds. I remember learning about Lea’s work and instantly relating to it. It’s exciting that she is now mentoring me!

Sophie is in a dark room, with the faint outline of a large window behind her. She has small bright white lights which are attached to the palms of her hands. She has one of her hands above her head in order to illuminate her face.

I have started to experiment with my ideas instead of purely dreaming about them… I have a habit of getting waylaid with new possibilities! From trying out my ideas new possibilities have naturally emerged. I have had to distil my choices, which sometimes means letting go of my desire to showcase everything in one piece! Lea has given good advice on having a clear idea and sticking with it. She highlighted that this piece could be the start of a series of works exploring different elements of the same theme.

A photograph of a piece of paper on a desk. The paper has 4 costume sketches on it drawn roughly in pencil by Izabela the costume designer. There are arrows and words describing the logistics of the costume. The photograph is dimly lit.

 I initially had intentions of making the costume myself, but I am very happy to say I have sourced designers Izabela and Livi. They are making my elaborate ideas come to life. My next goal is practicing with the costume and seeing how I can use it as part of the choreography.

Sophie is in a dark room, with the faint outline of a large window behind her. She has small bright white lights which are attached to the palms of her hands. Her hands are lifted over her head and connected to each other making an archway effect.

I am excited to perform the piece and am interested to see people’s interpretations/reactions. I am viewing this as the start of the project with the possibility to expand and develop the performance based on the response from onlookers. 

Sophie stands in silhouette in front of a window in a dance studio. She has one arm raised straight up in the air.

A Bit Of An Introduction:

Artist Diary #1

Sophie Halstead

Hello! My name is Sophie Halstead and I am excited to be creating a solo performance for A Bit of a Do.

I am a contemporary dance artist who specialises in live performance. My dance practice is always informed by my own human experiences in the hope that others can see themselves within my work too. Within my performances I love all things sparkly and I like to be mischievous!   

My creative process has started by drawing upon my experience of coming of age as a deaf female. I have been reflecting on my own relationship with my deafness and physically exploring the journey of frustration, acceptance and celebration.

Here is a short selection of video clips from the early stages of my process. The video clips are snippets from improvised dance tasks within which I am just trying to be myself – it’s more challenging than I first thought!

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Tom Marshman